8 reasons why Oberon is still awesome

It's the true first official sign of spring that we Michiganders can rely on every year. That's right kids, today, March 25, is Oberon Day, a verifiable holiday for beer lovers all across the state.

Kalamazoo based Bell's Brewery releases this seasonal beer every year the Monday before the first Monday of baseball season. Whether there is still snow on the ground or sleet in the air, it doesn't matter, because with a pint of this sunny beer guaranteed to be pouring, we know that summer is on its way.

In Michigan, we only see this beer through Labor Day, gracing tables for just a few short months. We like it better that way. This way we can truly look forward to something as the season finally changes out of our long, long winter.

The beer itself is a wheat-based brew, bright hazy orange in color, and light in flavor, an easy drinker.

Now, there are some naysayers out there about Oberon. Some craft beer aficionados (i.e. snobs) turn their nose up at this beer. Saying it's not what it used to be, or that it's just not good.

We beg to differ. We still think Oberon is totally awesome, and here are the reasons why.

Amy Sherman | MLive.com

#1-Just 4 ingredients. Really.

How can just four ingredients taste like summer in a glass? It's Bell's magic, magic that they've been brewing up now for over 20 years. Originally brewed under the name Solsun, Bell's rechristened the beer as Oberon in 1997.

According to the brewery, they are still brewing the beer using the original recipe, which includes just four ingredients: barley, wheat, hops and their house yeast. That's it.

It's that special combination of ingredients, including Hersbrucker and Saaz hops, that give the beer its distinctive, citrusy taste and slight pepperiness. Nope, there is no actual orange in the beer, just the slice you put on the glass if you want.

And what about that argument that the beer changes every year? Not true, according to former vice president at Bell's, Laura Bell. "Obviously, we are in a different brew house. And with 20 years of brewing beer, our quality control has gotten better, our process has gotten better. But remember that we are dealing with an agricultural product, and the hops and malts are slightly different each year. But we do brew it the same way every year," Bell explained in 2016.